Alyssa Healy Fires Another Century to Send Australia into World Cup Knockout Stage
The Australian skipper has produced superb consecutive hundreds to guide her team into the last four of the Women's Cricket World Cup, inspiring them to a merciless 10-wicket trouncing over Bangladesh.
The wicketkeeper-batter remained unbeaten on 113, coming just a few days after her equally impressive 142-run knock that saw off hosts India at the same Visakhapatnam stadium. This time, she shared an undefeated double-century opening partnership with Phoebe Litchfield (84no) to race to their target of 199 in just 24.5 overs.
“I felt I was a not at my best behind the stumps, and probably a bit as skipper as well tonight, but we’ll accept the win and progress,” Healy remarked.
Ironically, the supreme professionalism of the day's run-chase as the duo put on 202 runs followed perhaps the team's shoddiest display in the fielding department under the captain's leadership, with the skipper criticizing herself in particular for spilling a couple of the six chances that went down.
“I was a little bit disappointed with my glovework, and I needed to compensate with the batting, and luckily got the job done,” she added.
Since statistics was first recorded on fielding performance statistics in the year 2013, the six missed catches marked Australia’s poorest fielding showing at a World Cup tournament.
“Maybe it’s just that phase of the tournament – we’ve been here a while, and it’s something we’ll reflect on,” Healy said.
This allowed the opposition to manage 9-198 after they had chosen to bat first, their highest score in an One-Day International against the Aussies, with Sobhana Mostary scoring the first fifty ever for the Asian side against the world champions.
But the spinner's mesmeric continuous ten-over spell, in which she took 2-18 with four maidens, was vital to making sure the team's chase wasn’t too challenging.
The Captain Pleased with Win that Seals Knockout Place
Healy was pleased to learn that the victory, which places her unbeaten team top of the standings on nine points after four victories and a abandoned match, guarantees them a place in the last-four. “That's fantastic,” she exclaimed.
The experienced skipper raced to her hundred off just 73 balls, the fastest century of the tournament, and finished with 20 fours off the 77 balls she faced as she pulled away from her partner in the latter stages in the innings after they had gone practically shot for shot towards their half-centuries.
Litchfield Shines with First Tournament Half-Century
Left-hander Litchfield hit 12 boundaries and a six, reaching to her first tournament half-century off 46 deliveries soon after her partner reached hers off 43 balls. They went on to achieve the third-highest stand by any Aussie pair at a World Cup event.
In the first innings, during the sluggish fielding effort, Healy spilled the easiest of chances off a teammate and also failed to grasp a tough skied one off another bowler. Annoyingly, she also did take a clean chance off the same bowler but failed to review when the umpire turned down their shout.
The reinstated Brown bowled the fastest deliveries at the World Cup so far but was still the Aussies’ most expensive bowler, going for 0-52 off her nine overs.
Spinners Thrive as King Leads
In contrast, the slow bowlers thrived, led by Alana King, whose performance could have been even more productive if Beth Mooney hadn’t missed one in the slips.
Other spinners Wareham (2-22 off seven overs) and Gardner (two for 48 off nine) both chipped in, while Sutherland consolidated her position as the competition's leading wicket-taker with her two for 41, taking her total to 13.
Rubya Haider’s 44 and Mostary’s unbeaten 66 off 80 balls took Bangladesh to their highest-ever score against the Australians, but the total was rendered easy meat by a side who had successfully pursued 330 runs against the Indian side a few days earlier.
“It’s always nice when you’ve got the ‘Q’ beside your name in a World Cup,” said player-of-the-match King. “Certainly it doesn’t stop here. We look forward to returning to the next venue to face the English team and South Africa.”